March 10th, 2011
Galley Friend P.G. writes in:
In re: the real-life Batman project–I think you are asking the wrong question. I don’t think it’s possible to become a real-life Batman (yet). However, that shouldn’t be what would-be super heroes aspire to become, at least not that this stage. The question should be: could someone become Rorschach, The Comedian, or perhaps even The Night Owl (Dreiberg, not Mason)? Could your average individual, with the aid of some level of physical strength and skill better than average, and with some weapons, fight crime? I think the answer to that is yes.
The problem would be that in order to fight certain crimes, you would have to be willing to commit crimes yourself. For example: I could probably spend a few nights in a bad neighborhood with readily available computer equipment, even cheap “spy” equipment, and catch people planning crimes. This, in and of itself, is a crime. I might also be able to prevent some of those planned crimes through some measure of physical violence, which again, is a crime.
So the question isn’t necessarily whether you or I could fight crime and play the role of super hero, but whether we could accept the potential consequences of those actions.
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>>I could probably spend a few nights in a bad neighborhood with readily available computer equipment, even cheap “spy” equipment, and catch people planning crimes. This, in and of itself, is a crime.
Are you referring to 4th Amendment search and seizure law? If so, that restricts only government actors, not private citizens.
>>I might also be able to prevent some of those planned crimes through some measure of physical violence, which again, is a crime.
Not necessarily. In most jurisdictions an actor is privileged to use reasonable force to protect a 3rd party if he reasonably believes that 3rd would have a right to self-defense.
SkinsFanPG March 11, 2011 at 11:51 am
Bryan,
Most states do not allow for wire tapping-style surveillance without consent of both parties. It is also not legal to use force in your scenario unless the third party is in imminent danger, which is unlikely. But by all means, please put these to the test. I need a trial run before I can start “The League of Completely Average Dudes Fighting Crime”